Monster movies + scientific advancement + Ridley Scott + a new Dinosaur Comic June 26, 2008
Posted by symbolicgodzilla in comics, entertainment, monsters, movies, webcomics.Tags: alien, alien vs predator, avp, comic, creature from the black lagoon, criticism, culture, dinosaur comics, entertainment, freddy, godzilla, jason, monster, monster island, monster movies, mothra, movies, nuclear power, predator, ridley scott, scare factor, symbolism, symbols, vampire, video games, webcomic, werewolf
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I used to be convinced of something very similar to what T-Rex is on about in today’s Dinosaur Comic- if only more creatures of darkness donated themselves to science maybe we would have a better world. We could use the powers of the Creature from the Black Lagoon to enhance undersea exploration. We could replace our nuclear power plants with giant Godzilla monsters kept happily penned in on a reservation where we’d only need them to spew their atomic breath into some sort of container every so often. But to keep their menace our monsters need to be kept at a distance and always misunderstood, otherwise they lose their value.
It’d be like Monster Island, without the violence. Here’s the comic (click to enlarge):
The problem with such a scientific refuge is that inevitably the monsters would fight, as has been proven by such fine documentaries as Frankenstein vs. the Wolfman, Godzilla vs. Mothra, and Alien vs. Predator.
Incidentally, Ridley Scott has been quoted as saying that he won’t have an Alien 5 because Alien vs Predator reminds him too much of Jason vs. Freddy, which makes a certain kind of sense. Now that they are battling it out with each other, these alien monstrosities have lost a certain amount of the fear they used to generate from the silver screen. Of course, I played the AVP video game and kept getting killed easily despite playing as an alien so that really killed the “scare factor” of the franchise for me first. Plus, simply the fact of learning too much about how the aliens germinate and spread across space has removed the fear of the unknown that they represented. They’re no longer this incomprehensible alien predator, they’ve become one more space monster to fight. Aliens (the second alien movie) realized this and made it much more of an action movie.
So our monsters, our werewolves, our Godzillas, our aliens need to stay out of the light and need to stay mysterious or they lose the power they represent to us and they cease to reflect our fears. In the light of overexposure, they become cheesy jokes.
Religion vs Behavior – which came first? June 10, 2008
Posted by symbolicgodzilla in psychology, religion.Tags: behavior, buddha, buddhism, catholic, chicken, christ, christian, confirmation bias, criticism, culture, egg, hinduism, psychology, religion, sin
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Well depending on your religious or non-religious beliefs, this question seems pretty cut and dried:
- If you believe in a creator, the God(s)(esses) created whatever does the behavior
- If you don’t, man came up with the idea of religion
Over at Cafe Philos, Paul posted a blog questioning how religion impacts the behavior of the individual. He seems to come to a conclusion primarily favoring the idea that individuals interpret religion to justify their behavior, which is something I would not necessarily disagree with. He also acknowledges how the idea is incredibly complex.
Likely the relationship between behavior and religion lies strongly in the idea of confirmation bias, the idea that the human brain will usually interpret new information in a way consistent with their existing belief systems. So if a man inclined to believe that he shouldn’t be forced to pay his debts finds a religion that agrees with this viewpoint, he is more likely to take to that religion than one that encourages exact payment of all money owed. Or, in a more personal example, when an ex-girlfriend of mine decided it was over, she found it comforting that God also confirmed this by speaking to her from the tree in her front yard.
Of course, the religions we are raised with certainly color our own interpretation of events. My slight Catholic background likely causes me to look at religious matters as black and white: either you accept this particular aspect of your faith as true or you don’t, you can’t be unsure. I often find myself arguing with Christians that they aren’t truly Christians since they don’t believe in Jesus Christ dying for their sins.
One could argue that Buddha had such a confirmation bias when he founded Buddhism… the story of Buddha involves him rejecting the established faith of Hinduism till he finds a belief system that he could follow.
Ultimately, we probably choose our religion and our religion chooses us in a complicated chicken-egg sort of cycle that ends with us believing in whatever gives us the most comfort – be it the familiar we were raised with or the radical that allows to think of ourselves as agents of change. What do you think?
The Origins of Humanity’s Superheroes + A Softer World Comic June 9, 2008
Posted by symbolicgodzilla in entertainment, heroes, webcomics.Tags: a softer world, batman, bejamin franklin, ben franklin, comic, comics, criticisim, cultural artifacts, culture, entertainment, heroes, joseph campbell, luke skywalker, oedipus, oedipus rex, star wars, theseus, web comic, webcomic
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Horne and Comeau’s A Softer World photo-comic recently posted a strip involving the origins of our heroes (click on the image to enlarge):
According to Joseph Campbell and other social anthropologists, the heroes of a culture often reflect the values of a culture. Yet so often our heroes, even as far back as ancient Greece, reflect the orphaning expressed in this strip: Batman, Theseus, Luke Skywalker, even Oedipus Rex. Why is it that humanity requires its heroes to be separated so violently from the family unit? Is it a flaw in the species, a need for adversity, or something deeper? Even Ben Franklin, famed American cultural icon, has separation from his family as an integral part of his “myth.”
Another cheap, but accurate, shot at television media June 6, 2008
Posted by symbolicgodzilla in comics, television, webcomics.Tags: comic, comics, criticism, culture, diesel sweeties, entertainment, history, news, television, web comic, webcomic
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Diesel Sweeties takes a jab at the problems inherent in current televised news and historical broadcasting. Click on the comic to enlarge it.
Would you really trust grandpa television? I wouldn’t.
Internet Acronyms + Dinosaur Comics June 6, 2008
Posted by symbolicgodzilla in comics, entertainment, internet speak.Tags: acronym, blogosphere, comic, comics, criticism, culture, dinosaur comics, entertainment, kik, language, web comic, webcomic, wiki, wikipedia
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So a long time ago a friend of mine and I decided that we were sick of LOL. Luckily, at the exact same moment, I accidentally typed “KIK” which, if you’ll take a moment to inspect your keyboard, you’ll notice is exactly one keystroke to the left of you’re standard LOL. Thus we began an Internet revolution to convince all of our friends to do the same. It did not travel far at all, though maybe now if I get some help from the “blogosphere” we can continue the uphill battle. This special version of Internet laughter will show off not only your amusement, but also your uniqueness from the norm of society. It’s almost like ironic laughter, only less pretentious.
I also noticed that Dinosaur Comics recently posted this comic about needing to expand the emotional range of their Internet acronym speak (click the comic to enlarge it):
I think I need to get ready to incorporate IMMOGBNR into my vocabulary. Maybe someone should start a wiki for these phrases. Maybe on Wikipedia?
